


This is Probably a Bad Idea But....

by Descended_from_Hufflepuffs



Category: Prodigal Son (TV 2019), Walker (TV 2020)
Genre: Case Fic, Crossover, Gen, Plot Inspired by Prodigal Son 1 x 16, Pre-Series, both of these boys need a leash, but no one is holding it, depictions of violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:33:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28939293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Descended_from_Hufflepuffs/pseuds/Descended_from_Hufflepuffs
Summary: Texas Ranger Cordell Walker can't seem to crack this case. He gets some unwanted assistance in the form of the eccentric Malcolm Bright
Relationships: Malcolm Bright & Cordell Walker
Comments: 5
Kudos: 19





	1. Chapter 1

Cordell Walker was not what you would call a patient man. Sure, he was easy to get along with and generally good-natured and most people he knew liked him. But everyone had their flaws and his was that he did not like slow cases. He liked getting leads and finding suspects, not sitting at his desk and shifting through the same stack of papers over and over again. He liked having  _ answers _ , not asking more questions.

Unfortunately, the case he was currently handling was not catered to his specific wants. There wasn't enough information, not nearly enough suspects, and it was all going too slow. He needed a break yesterday.

If only the world was that kind….

“Walker. My office, now,” the Captain called from his desk. Sighing, Cordell stood up. He knew this would happen eventually; any time a case seemed to be taking too long, the brass called in and either gave them more pressure or called for it to go cold. Neither was a good option, especially for this case.

High-end robberies had been taking place all over Austin. Ordinarily, this wouldn’t be their department but local law enforcement was getting overwhelmed with the calls. This gang, up-and-comers in the game, came in, made a lot of noise and threats, stole the most expensive items they could grab, and ran out before the police even had a chance to get there. When they were still going through evidence of one scene, another hit would get called in. The most disturbing part was that at each scene, one dead body would be left behind. Just one. No one could make heads or tails of why they would go through all that trouble, especially since almost none of the living witnesses were even aware someone had died.

“Yes, sir?” He leaned on the doorframe of the office, hoping to get this over with quickly so he could go back to staring at useless files.

“I just got off the phone with a friend of mine up in D.C.. It would appear our case is connected to one of their on-going investigations so they’re sending one of their folks down to help you.”

Cordell bit back a groan. The absolute last thing he wanted to deal with was a suited fed that would just boss him around and try to teach him how to do his job. “How sure are they that it’s connected?”

“It’s a pretty safe bet. They’ve been tracking a gang that has the same hit M.O., down to the one dead body per scene. Seems that’s not a common practice among organized crime.”

“Understood. When does my new partner get here?”

“Tomorrow morning. You’ll pick him up at Austin-Bergstrom International at 9 AM.”

Of course he’d be playing chaufer too. “Anything I should know before they get here?”

“Probably. His name is Malcolm Bright and he seems to have a record of pissing people off. Has that free spirit that encourages him to break a few rules here and there. But he’s a dedicated man and has an impressive closure record, even for the FBI.”

Well, at least he’d be a competent pain in the ass. “Good to know. Anything else?”

“No. You’re dismissed. Actually, why don’t you head home? I doubt you’ll get through much else tonight.”

“Yes, sir.”

Well, it’s not like this case could get any worse.

\------------

Malcolm Bright pored over the file in front of him. He knew he should probably at least try to get some sleep before his flight in the morning but he wasn’t sure he wanted to test his psyche tonight. 

This gang- he assumed it was a gang- just popped up in a new state. So far they’d moved from New York to Chicago to Los Angeles and then Dallas. Now they were making noise in Austin. If he didn’t move in now, there was a very high chance he’d miss them  _ again _ and have to wait for them to pop up somewhere else. Ordinarily, this wouldn’t even be his case. He was just a profiler, organized crime wasn’t exactly his wheelhouse. But the dead bodies- one per scene, each victim isolated and with very similar features, spelled bad news. He’d gotten a chance to look at a live scene when they were in LA and based on how isolated the kills were, he figured it was a lone member of the gang. 

Basically, they had a closet serial killer on the loose and it wouldn’t get better anytime soon. The kills were getting more frequent, more intense. The killer was an addict.; who knew how long they had until he decided to quit hiding it? Leave the gang and strike out on his own and be nearly impossible to track?

His only qualm was being assigned a partner for the case. He understood how it looked when the FBI just took over a case but sometimes it was nice to work with his regular colleagues. But this time, he would be working with one of the local boys in charge of the case. One Cordell Walker, Texas Ranger. Given Walker’s record with “going off the book” as they say, he was pretty sure he was being punished for the number of times he gave his superiors a headache by doing the same thing. He had a difficult enough time working with regular law enforcement officers; a man like Walker would prove an interesting experience to say the least.

Sighing, he took another sip of his coffee and settled in for a long night. Hopefully, things would look better in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Cordell was waiting at the airport entrance when Malcolm Bright came into view and he barely managed to suppress a groan. Hair practically glued to his scalp, shoes that probably cost his entire monthly salary and a three-piece suit that likely cost double that. Having a fed come in and tell him what to do was one thing but a rich kid fed on his back was a whole different ball game. 

He barely managed to plaster a smile on before Bright got up to him. "Hi! I'm Malcolm Bright; you must be Ranger Walker. It's a pleasure to be working with you. I've heard a lot about you around the office."

"Is that so?" He highly doubted that but his mamma raised him with manners. “I’ve heard a little bit about you too. I guess our bosses decided we would make good partners based on our track records with the rule book.” 

“I guess we’ll get along pretty well then.”

_ We can only hope. _ “I’ll take you back to the station and we can go over the case there. I was told you had some additional background on what we’re dealing with.”

“Yes, unfortunately.” Bright huffed softly. “Let’s go. The sooner we catch these guys, the better.”

Cordell nodded and stepped aside, gesturing for Malcolm to get in his truck. He managed to stifle his chuckle when the profiler seemed to struggle with getting up into the seat before getting in himself.

Yep. Definitely going to be an interesting ride.

\------

Malcolm was a profiler. It was what he did and he did it very well and very naturally. On the job, it was rarely an issue as most of his colleagues were aware that he was strange and most of them knew why. Working with new people was always a tricky road since almost none of them knew just how odd he could get, so he usually took a page out of Ainsley’s book and just did a very good job of appearing well-adjusted.

This would be less of a struggle if Cordell Walker was not an insanely interesting person. First of all, the man was tall. Very tall. Probably the tallest person he’s ever met. This only added to his confident demeanor and the way he seemed to effortlessly move through his life. His hands glided over the steering wheel rather than gripping it and his gaze was focused and assessing. Ranger Walker was a man who knew what he wanted and usually had the support to get it. It was an enviable position to say the least.

“Is there something on my face?”

Bright snapped out of his thoughts and coughed awkwardly into his hand, realizing he’d just been silently staring at Walker for the better part of five minutes. One bad thing about pretty much always being in Profiler Mode was that he never really knew when to stop. As stated previously, it was useful on cases but not for his social life. “No. Sorry. Jetlag.” That made zero sense and Cordell clearly knew that but he let the subject drop.

Thankfully, it wasn’t that long of a drive until they reached the main office. In just a few minutes, he was firmly buried in his case file with terrible coffee in hand. This is where he felt at home. “So this gang’s been hitting other states and cities around the country, mostly larger metropolitan areas with a decent to high volume of high-end stores and jewelry auctions,” he started as soon as the conference room door closed behind them. “We can’t say for sure how long they’ve been in operation since no one’s been able to connect their attacks until the murders started popping up but I don’t think they’ve been active for longer than five years or so.”

“So they’ve been active for longer than the murders have been going on. What started that? Is it like a calling card? An intimidation tactic?”

Malcolm shook his head. “I don’t think so. I’m betting they’ve mostly gone under the radar by design, probably waiting until they have more capital and connections before they make themselves known to the law. And I’m not entirely sure the murders are a group decision.”

Walker’s brow furrowed and he sat forward in his seat. “What do you mean?”

Malcolm laid out various crime scene photos. “First of all, there’s the placement of the victims. All the murders have been relatively out of the way. Most witnesses don’t even remember the murder happening and a couple of them weren’t even found until several hours after police arrived on the scene. The killer is hiding them, which would imply they’re acting alone. Also, all the victims have a similar physical appearance, which implies a personal motive. If it was just an intimidation tactic, the victims would be just anybody. So we’re not necessarily tracking a group of killers, we’re just looking for one killer that happens to be part of a group commiting a different crime.”

Walker nodded, seeming to understand Malcolm’s reasoning. “I’m betting whoever the leader is isn’t too pleased about these murders bringing attention to them.”

“I’ll take that bet. But there’s one more thing that’s particularly worrying.” He pulled a spreadsheet out of his personal file. “I think our killer has more than one motive. There’s the personal reason attached to why all the victims look so similar and then there’s this.”

Walker glanced at the sheet. “...The murders have been getting more frequent.”

He nodded. “I don’t think it was initially every job like it is now. When they started, it was months between them. Then it was weeks. Now we’re bordering on days between each kill. Our killer is addicted.”

“Addicted to murder?”

Malcolm shrugged. “Whatever brings the serotonin. Murder is no more or less of a potential addiction than alcohol or cocaine; it comes down to personal taste mostly.”

Yeah. Walker definitely thought he was crazy now.

“...Right.” Walker cleared his throat. “So, where do we go from here?”   
  


“Ideally, I could make contact with the gang, maybe posing as an insurance adjuster, try to profile on the sly and catch the killer. Unfortunately, we know nothing about this gang aside from the fact that they like motorcycles, wearing black, and have a killer on their squad.” He shrugged. “I wa hoping you would have an idea on that front.”

Whatever Walker might’ve said to that was interrupted by the Captain. “Walker, Bright. We just got a call; your man made another hit.”

They were out the door almost in sync (almost because Walker was  _ tall  _ and  _ fast _ ), Malcolm barley having the chance to check for his gun before hopping into Walker’s truck.

Walker gave him a look as they backed out into the street. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “I am a trained FBI field agent; I think I can handle a basic armed robbery.” It was a common misconception that he was useless in the field; that was actually one of his best scored areas in training. Not that most people would guess that based on his general nerdy character and probably-too-expensive shoes. 

Whatever. They had bigger fish to fry.

And it’s not like he cared what Walker thought.


End file.
